Watch Will Smith Turn ‘Aladdin’s Prince Ali Into a Will Smith Song

Okay technically he’s the Genie; Mena Massoud actually plays Aladdin in the new live-action remake of the classic Disney cartoon. But that was too good of a joke to pass up. What was I supposed to do? Not make the obvious wisecrack? Hell no. That’s not how ScreenCrush works. Sorry.

The video above, an excerpt from the new Aladdin, directed by Guy Ritchie, shows off Smith in one of the film’s big musical numbers, “Prince Ali.” Smith totally turns it into a Will Smith song. There’s rapping. There’s a couple “Ha-ha!”s I’m pretty sure I caught at least one “Wooo!” in there. All the greatest hits.

For your comparative purposes, here is the original “Prince Ali” sequence from the animated Aladdin, with a sensational Robin Williams performing the Genie:

If I say I preferred the Robin Williams version does that make me a monster? I hope not, because I do. Smith’s vocal performance is fine, but the animated version is just more ... lively. It’s using animation in such a clever way, with the Genie constantly mutating into all these different characters as he sings. Ritchie’s version is just Will Smith dancing and singing. Something feels like it’s missing. Aladdin opens in theaters on May 24.